


The Return

by birdherd



Category: Fire Emblem Heroes, Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
Genre: Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Fix-It, Friends to Lovers, Heroes Verse, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, Pining (eventually), Post-Canon, Tags to be added, characters to be added?, lots of other heroes in minor roles, lyon died but he is ok now, rating just to be safe
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-15
Updated: 2020-11-14
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:13:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,357
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27555157
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/birdherd/pseuds/birdherd
Summary: Ephraim gets summoned, and ends up finding more opportunities than just escaping responsibility for a while.Or, Lyon is summoned to Askr long after he has fallen.
Relationships: Ephraim/Lyon (Fire Emblem)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 14





	1. Use Heroic Grails?

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know if there is something I need to tag here, I feel like I might be missing something. I plan on adding tags as I go along as well, I just don't want to falsely advertise too much of anything that hasn't happened yet. On the violence tag, the first chapters won't really have violence, but the later ones will have your typical battle depictions. With that I'll get to the story, if all goes to plan this will be a long one!

Ephraim paced back and forth. He imagined that a king, fully clad in armor, was probably a strange sight to see alone like this, but he continued his pacing nonetheless; it helped him process his feelings. 

Everything had happened so fast.

Ephraim had been reluctant to assume the title of king after the war finally came to an end. Years ago, he even told his father “I’d rather be a mercenary,” only to be met with a piercing look of disappointment and a stern lesson on responsibility. Yet despite how much Ephraim disliked it, his father Fado was right. Eirika should not be forced to rule alone, it just wouldn’t be fair-- Ephraim knew she held her own reservations about taking up the crown too. During their youth, they had lightheartedly joked about the daunting prospect of who should ascend the throne between one another. There was little urgency because their father still had many years ahead to rule— and to teach them how to rule. After all, they were twins, both equally suited to the task. There was supposed to be plenty of time to figure it out. And then there wasn’t.

And the worst part: the enemy was their best friend, Lyon.

Even now, months after the war’s tragic end, Ephraim’s feelings were still a tangled mess. The gentle Gradoan prince had good intentions, but his actions had still led to this. As the dust settled, the people called for a new king to succeed Fado. Ephraim had never wanted to be that king. 

His juvenile mercenary dream had always been an impossible, hadn’t it? His father’s words still rang clearly in his head. Neither he or Eirika had really been in any shape to ascend the throne, but Ephraim reluctantly did so. He put on his father’s armor and sat on the throne, under the condition that he keep the title of prince. Or lord. Anything the people wanted to call him but that. He couldn’t bear being called king, not now. As for Eirika, she was extremely grateful, and made sure to tell him as much often. She helped how she could by tasking herself with traveling the war-torn continent to repair relations among other nations. 

That, however, left Ephraim in the mundane, tedious, and absolutely tortuous world of politics and paperwork. And he hated every minute of it. His freedom was suddenly cut short, replaced with endless responsibility, pointless decorum, and mind-numbing boredom.   
Through it all, Ephraim still mourned his late best friend. He thought of Lyon often, daily—no, multiple times a day, despite the fresh wounds that the memories reopened. He made a conscious effort to remember what Lyon’s face looked like, how he sounded, anything to hold on to so as not to forget. No matter how bad the pain of remembering was, the empty void of forgetting hurt worse.

“Listen, Ephraim. I’ve always loved you. I’ve always hated you...”

The shattered mess hurt almost too much to handle. Did he mean that? Any of it?   
Above all, Ephraim hated the demon king. He would kill him twice if he could-- the way he manipulated his dearest friend into a monster, all by turning the kindness that was Lyon’s biggest strength into a fatal weakness… it still made his blood boil.  
Ephraim tried not to think about it, because the anger had nowhere to go, eating him up inside. The key word being try, because he always failed.

...phraim? Hey, Ephraim?   
A familiar voice shook him from his stupor. Ephraim looked to the source of the sound and noticed Kiran in the doorway, holding an ornate chalice in each hand. 

Right. This was Askr. Ephraim had been at his wit’s end, pacing the woods outside castle Renais in an effort to clear his head after a grating meeting with some especially insensitive, snobby nobles when he was suddenly summoned here to join Askr’s Order of Heroes. That was two months ago.   
“Ephraim, are you alright?”  
Ephraim gave an apologetic smile. “Sorry, I was just...lost in thought again. What is it?”   
Kiran shook one of the chalices excitedly. “I’m going to summon a new hero from Magvel! Want to come watch?”  
Ephraim blinked. This was strange, because Kiran claimed to not have direct control over who they summoned, but then again Kiran was always a little strange. Regardless, their brilliant tactical mind and kind disposition had won everyone over, himself included.

Apparently, Ephraim had been one of Kiran’s first summons, because the Order was empty when he’d arrived. Ephraim’s first reaction to being so suddenly pulled away from his life in Magvel was annoyance, although he did not say it aloud; he had so many things to do and no time for the whims of these random strangers. But after Kiran’s assurances that those who are summoned are returned back to the exact time they were taken from, along with finally experiencing the thrills of battle again, Ephraim realized that this was actually the best thing to happen to him in a very long time. He was proud of how much he was relied upon, too. Kiran deployed him in all of the hardest fights, usually alongside an elegant yet sleepy manakete prince by the name of Corrin, the archer of the wind Prince Takumi, and the Pegasus rider Princess Eir. But while they and many others were reunited with others from their worlds as the Order grew, so far no one else from Magvel had come. Ephraim had been growing increasingly lonely—it was difficult to explain what life is like on an entirely different world to a stranger.   
Hopefully, though, that was about to change.

Kiran’s invitation was mostly out of politeness, though-- the summoning circle was so centrally located that it was honestly hard to miss a session. There was already a small crowd of other heroes gathered around the circular stone courtyard looking on curiously, and Ephraim soon saw why: dozens of copies of the same ornate chalices Kiran was holding before were neatly lined up around the edge of the summoning circle, making it even more of a spectacle than it already was. By the time Ephraim drew close to one side, Kiran was already deep into explaining it all.   
“...and according to information I recovered from the library, these grails were forged with some of the same power that created my Breidablik here. Each chalice only holds a little bit of power on its own, but with enough of them together like this, combined with the catalyst of the weapon, they can open a very specific portal in order to call on an exact hero of my choosing...”

...huh. Kiran had decided to call on someone from Magvel for him? That was kind. He began to imagine who it would be. Eirika would be a familiar face, or someone like Joshua could add a lot of excitement to the mix.

As if on cue, Prince Takumi spoke up. “So, who is it going to be?” The Hoshidan had his arms crossed defensively, as if feeling threatened by this newcomer already.

Kiran became less confident. “Well, uh... I’ve been working hard to perfect my aim, but he’s been hard to reach out to. I’m going to try summoning a hero from Magvel, the world of the Sacred. I think I’ll let him make his own introduction, just in case my calculations are off and it ends up being someone else…” Kiran rubbed their neck sheepishly. “Alright, please step back everyone, I’m... not exactly sure how this will work.”

Kiran unceremoniously aimed Breidablik at one of the grails in front of them and fired. A beam of light burst forward, and rapidly ricocheted between the circle of grails to generate a bright blue glow that was difficult to look at in its intensity. It grew brighter and brighter, until Ephraim was sure it was just about to explode when-- in a flash, the grails disappeared along with the glow. The center of the summoning circle began to glow again, but more gently like it did during a normal summon. A silhouetted figure began to manifest, and a long cape began to flow.  
Probably not Eirika or Joshua, then. Maybe Artur or Seth?

The silhouette sharpened. Medium length hair, and some armor at the shoulders.

No... No way.  
maybe it was Knoll, there was no way it could be—

The glow faded, and Ephraim’s heart lurched.

“It worked! Everyone, here’s our newest Hero!!” Kiran yelled, jumping with excitement.

Lyon stepped forward, eyes focused on Kiran, and bowed politely. “It is good to meet you. I am Lyon, prince of Grado. I hope that we can become friends.”

The sight of him, it was too much for Ephraim. and he reacted. Suddenly he was rushing forward, fistfuls of Lyon’s shirt in his hands, pinning him to the nearest wall.

“YOU!!! WHAT GIVES YOU THE RIGHT TO DESTROY MY EVERYTHING ALL OVER AGAIN?!”   
Ephraim roared, vision clouding with red.


	2. Dissonance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ephraim grapples with Lyon's presence, and Kiran is awkward.

Not releasing his grip, Ephraim snapped his gaze over to Kiran. “KIRAN, TAKE HIM BACK. HE’S DANGEROUS!!”

Kiran wore a shocked expression. Everyone else in the crowd did, too, and silence overtook the area. 

Ever the composed one, Kiran was the first snap out of their daze, shaking their head in disbelief. “Ephraim... please, calm down, let’s sort this out—”

“Listen to me, he’s the demon king!! He was responsible for the war in Magvel!” Ephraim interrupted, growing desperate. They had to understand. The demon king was a manipulative monster, a murderer, he was—  
Ephraim looked back, and locked eyes with Lyon for the first time. He was frozen still, deep purple eyes blown wide, and Ephraim was met with a look of pure confusion and fear.

“...Ephraim? What’s... happening?” Came a quiet, trembling but oh so familiar voice.

Ephraim’s defenses crashed to the ground. He looked so much like the Lyon he used to know, and seemed so genuinely… himself. Was this another act? The demon king had deceived an entire continent with his acting before. Ephraim hesitated. 

“I...”

His eyes darted around the crowd, looking for any hint of understanding among its members, only to find none. Everyone was still staring, and he couldn’t deal with all of this right now. 

“I don’t know…” he mumbled, mind racing.

He let go of Lyon and ran straight for his quarters without looking back, leaving the confused crowd and an even more confused Lyon behind.

It didn’t matter what they thought. As he ran, thoughts swirled in his head. The undeniable fact was that this was... bad. Either Kiran had just unleashed the Demon king into Askr, or this Lyon was about to. Ephraim couldn’t go through that again, he just couldn’t. Not the war and destruction, and definitely not the death of his dearest friend. Why was this happening now?!

Ephraim finally reached his quarters and shut himself inside, breathless from the exertion, and sat on the edge of his bed. He allowed himself to hunch over, cradling his head in his hands.

What do I do now?

“Ephraim? Hey... can I come in?” Kiran’s voice called cautiously. 

Ephraim lifted his head up. Well, no time to lose. Hopefully he could make them understand the gravity of the situation. 

“It’s not locked, enter.”

They pushed open the sturdy door, but then opted to linger in the doorway awkwardly.  
“Hey, I’m really sorry about... I mean, I heard how fondly you would talk about Lyon sometimes, and then I read about how he was a prince and magical adept of Magvel... so when I found out I could use the grails to summon him I thought it would be a good idea. But—I really should have asked you first, that’s my fault.” Kiran took a cautious step forward. “...But don’t worry! I gave him quarters on the other side of the barracks, so you probably won’t have to see each other much.”

Ephraim looked up in disbelief. “Wait. Kiran, you’re going to let him stay?!”  
“Well… yes. we need another mage, and he signed the contract. I mean… Ephraim, what was all that before? Why did you call him a demon king? I admit I haven’t read everything on Magvel yet, but I-- is that Lyon’s title? Is he a villain?”

Ephraim hesitated. “…No. I’m not sure what the books say, Kiran, but I was there. An ancient evil that calls itself the demon king manipulated and possessed Lyon. Then… then he became a villain. Do you know what time you summoned him from? Because where I’m from, he is dead. There was no way to save him. I... I was the one who...” Ephraim’s voice cracked, and he knew he couldn’t say any more without risking a breakdown.

Kiran looked shaken. “... I’m so sorry.” They began fiddling with the edge of their sleeve, a nervous habit. “And um, unfortunately, no, I’ve never known or been able to control the timing of my summons. But... there has to be a way, I’m sure of it-- I’ll look into it. You’re worried he has this demon king inside him now?”

Ephraim nodded.

“...I see. Please tell me if you see or hear of him doing anything suspicious, and I’ll... take care of sending him away immediately. But until we know for sure, I’d like to at least try allowing him to fight with us. He was your friend once, too-- are you not happy to see him again? If he’s not possessed, um… this could be an opportunity to spend more time together.” Kiran offered hopefully.

Ephraim had some choice words for Kiran, but chose not to say any of them. They had no idea how much he’d mourned over Lyon, and been tormented by his own actions, replaying them in his head over and over... and now Kiran was willing to risk keeping the very same ancient evil around just because the army needed a mage. He would never understand their logic. 

“...Well, I’ll leave you be now, thank you for the information.” With that, Kiran turned quickly and left.

Still, a seed of hope was planted in Ephraim’s mind. Sure, if Lyon were himself, then... 

no. No use in wishful thinking, the responsible part of himself scolded. The stakes are too high.

Ephraim’s thoughts shifted back to Lyon. Strategy was not his strong suit, but obviously a plan was needed.  
If Kiran is going to be reckless, then I have to be the responsible one.  
Ok. Step one, find out where Lyon’s room is, to keep tabs on him. Maybe ask if anyone’s seen anything strange yet. If they have, then… there wouldn’t even be a need for step two.

Good enough, Ephraim decided. After lots of walking and plenty of wrong turns, he finally stumbled upon Lyon’s room: the door was the same as all the others, but there was no name carved into the doorplate yet, and a telltale welcome basket of goods that Princess Sharena always put together for new heroes sat at the door—filled with fruits, pastries and the like. Ephraim made a mental note of the heroes in the adjacent rooms: Chrom and Eir. The basket’s presence meant that Lyon was obviously not in yet, but knocking on his neighbors’ doors yielded no results either. They were both out too. Ok, step two is finding them later.

Ephraim hadn’t been on this side of the residence halls before, and while it looked much the same as the side he resided in, he didn’t like the vaguely unsettling feeling. It felt like he was being watched, yet the area was empty. Well, no use staying any longer.  
Ephraim decided to search the castle and grounds next for any sign of the Grado prince. Yet he ran into another dead end: nothing. No one had even seen him since he was summoned and finished receiving some basic information from Kiran. With daylight fading, Ephraim accepted defeat and headed for the dining hall. If this Lyon was anything like the introverted prince he used to know, he had probably gone to his room by now anyway, but at least Chrom and Eir might be getting a meal. Ephraim served himself a generous helping of food—meat and potatoes of some sort, not that he cared much, and made for his usual spot to sit and eat with a few fellow lancers when a flash of lavender and deep purple caught his eye across the room. Ephraim locked eyes with Lyon, who looked like he had seen a ghost. The mage dropped his tray and wordlessly ran out of the room. 

A pang of guilt caught in Ephraim’s throat. Right… the last thing I did was pin him to a wall and yell at him.  
For the second time today, a roomful of eyes were on Ephraim. Choosing to ignore them (again), he went to pick up the dropped tray, but the food had spilled far too much to salvage. Letting out a frustrated sigh, he hurried past the onlookers, down the hallway to Lyons room, and turned the corner just in time to hear the door creak shut. 

Ephraim grimaced. It was sort of like whiplash, seeing someone who you’ve seen die alive and well again. Add to that trying to figure out whether said person was possessed by a cunning ancient evil or not, all while trying to convince otherworldly strangers of the danger they might be in made things almost impossible. Lyon’s elusive behavior could be interpreted either way-- a startled prince, or a secretive demon king.

Ephraim let out a frustrated sigh. Kiran should never have.... oh, thats right, Kiran. Maybe they know what time this Lyon was from. That would solve things far more easliy. Ephraim made his way to Kiran’s quarters and raised his hand to knock when the sound of Kiran.... singing? stopped him.  
“Like ships in the night... you keep passing me by-y... just wasting ti-ime, trying to prove who’s right, and if your boat goes crashing into the sea... if it’s just you and me.... trying to find a light... like ships in the night...”  
it was a very odd melody— and Kiran wasn’t a very gifted singer, but they sounded happy. Some other heroes had sworn they heard Kiran’s strange songs late at night, but this was his first time hearing them personally. It made him smile a little. He regretted having to interrupt, but this was important.  
“Kiran?”

The singing stopped. “Oh, yes? Come in.”

“Kiran, I’m sorry to bother you but... do you know what time you summoned Lyon from yet? If it was early enough, he won’t have started his experiments with the demon King’s soul that led to his possession.”  
Kiran shook their head, tone somber. “I’m sorry... I checked some books, but no luck. There’s no way to tell, as far as I know. The only way would be to ask him personally. You’re from a time further in the future, right? We could ask him what the most recent thing that happened was.”  
Ephraim grimaced. “Kiran, if he’s possessed, he’ll lie. There’s no way to know if what he says is truthful.”

“Oh, right. I... maybe if—no...”

Ephraim gave a sympathetic smile. “I appreciate you trying. I... really want to believe Lyon is himself. I’ve missed him so much, and I still mourn his death. But ever since taking my father’s place, I’ve learned that I have to protect my people, and my friends too, even though I’m not a ruler here. I can’t make the same mistakes and let the same evil that destroyed my world destroy this one, too.”

Kiran nodded. “Well, I plan on starting his training tomorrow, and combat always tends to bring out a person’s true colors, I’ve found. I feel a little bad about it, though—he expressed his reservations about fighting to me, but he was still willing to do it for our cause.” 

Ephraim’s eyes widened. That sounded... just like Lyon. “I’ll be hoping for the best.” 

As he left the room, he allowed himself the smallest shred of hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slightly less sad chapter! Now things can get going... Again, let me know if I should tag anything. Also points if you know Kiran's song, it's kinda old.

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, a cliffhanger, sorry sorry. I know these are more fun to write than they are to read, so ill be uploading the next chapter too, gimme a sec.


End file.
